Mainstream Russian Nationalism and the State-Civilization Identity: Perspectives from below

Abstract

Based on more than 100 interviews in European Russia, this article sheds light on the bottom-up dynamics of Russian nationalism. After offering a characterization of the post-2012 state-civilization discourse from above, I examine how ordinary people imagine Russia as a state-civilization. Interview narratives of inclusion into the nation are found to overlap with state discourse on three main lines: (1) ethno-nationalism is rejected, and Russia is imagined to be a unique, harmonious multi-ethnic space in which the Russians (russkie) lead without repressing the others; (2) Russia's multinationalism is remembered in myths of peaceful interactions between Russians (russkie) and indigenous ethnic groups (korennyye narodi) across the imperial and Soviet past; (3) Russian culture and language are perceived as the glue that holds together a unified category of nationhood. Interview narratives on exclusion deviate from state discourse in two key areas: Attitudes to the North Caucasus reveal the geopolitical-security, post-imperial aspect of the state-civilization identity, while stances toward non-Slavic migrants in city spaces reveal a degree of cultural nationalism that, while sharing characteristics with those of Western Europe, is also based on Soviet-framed notions of normality. Overall, the article contributes to debates on how Soviet legacies and Russia's post-imperial consciousness play out in the context of the pro-Putin consensus.